Enjoy a step back in time, some unusual Christmas shopping and seasonal carols

Go back in history to a time of festive food, fun and Victorian splendour. Rochester’s Dickensian Christmas Festival returns on 5 and 6 December, offering food and drink, street entertainment, live music and market stalls.

Wander down to Rochester High Street between 10am and 5pm to mingle with Dickensian characters and enjoy a Christmas of times gone by, www.rochesterdickensfestival.org.uk.

Tree other great things to do this month…

• Christmas shopping? Take some time out to enjoy Bluewater’s Winter Wonderland between 26 November and 3 January (closed 25 December). Attractions include ice skating, Christmas 4D cinema, Santa’s Grotto and a 40-metre snow slide, as well as traditional rides and festive games. Tickets should be pre-booked for the ice skating, cinema and Santa’s Grotto via Bluewater’s Winter Wonderland website, bluewaterwinterwonderland.co.uk.

• Leeds Castle in Maidstone has got the festive season all sewn up, with a plethora of events, including a market, garden trail, Santa’s Grotto and special Christmas walks and displays to enjoy. Check out the website for dates, times and booking details, www.leeds-castle.com/What’s+On.

• Introduce your little ones to the fun of ice skating at special parent and toddler morning sessions for children between the ages of two and four at Calverley Grounds in Royal Tunbridge Wells. The rink is open between 20 November and 3 January (closed 25 December). Pre-booking essential, as is bringing a change of clothes as your toddler may get wet while on the ice. Book online at www.tunbridgewellsatchristmas.com/skating or call 01892 554645.

Little Kent Loves… CHRISTMAS MUSIC AND CAROLS

Discover the reason for the season at these sublime carol and festive music events

• Eltham Palace Carol Concert: An evening of festive music at this stunning palace on the Kent-London border. Takes place on 10 December at 7.30pm. Tickets £15 (English Heritage, members £10), available on 0370 333 1183, www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/whats-on

• Whitstable Choral Society Christmas Carols: Annual festive concert to get you well and truly in the Christmas mood. Taking place on 12 December at 7.30pm at St Alphege Church on Whitstable High Street. Tickets £7.50 (under 12s free) available on the door, or in advance from Gatefield Sounds in Whitstable, or Music Bay in Herne Bay, www.whitstablechoral.org.uk.

• Heart of Kent Hospice Carol Concert: This local charity’s annual carol concert takes place this year on 16 December at 7pm at St Mary’s Church, West Malling. Call 01622 790195 to book places as demand will be high. Entry free, donations appreciated, www.hokh.org/events/detail/christmas-carol-concert.

• The Overtones’ Christmas Party: Enjoy something a bit different at Margate Winter Gardens on 18 December at 7pm. Popular all-male vocal group, The Overtones, present a fun, festive concert with tickets from £21.50 available at: www.margatewintergardens.co.uk/event/the-overtones.

No Sunday is complete without a roast dinner, and in the glorious county of Kent you'll be spoilt for choice with fantastic places to go. We have picked 12 great places where you can indulge in a roast with all the trimmings